53. But what arguments should we use? Let us construct the truth of this mystery from the case of the incarnation. Was nature used when the Lord Jesus was born of Mary? In the normal course of things, a woman customarily gives birth by union with a man, but in the Virgin’s case, she gave birth in a manner beyond the course of nature. And the body that we bring about comes from the Virgin. Why do you seek a natural explanation in the case of Christ’s body when the Lord Jesus himself was born of the Virgin in a manner beyond nature? In fact, the true flesh of Christ which was crucified and buried is the same as the flesh that is truly in the sacrament.
54. The Lord himself declares, “This is my body.” Before the blessing of these heavenly words one type of thing was named; after the consecration a body is indicated. He himself says it is his blood. Before the consecration, it is called one thing; after the consecration blood is announced. And you say, “Amen,” that is, it is true. What the mouth speaks, the mind understands within; how the word sounds the feelings sense.
55. So Christ nourishes his church with these sacraments through which the substance of the soul is strengthened. And properly seeing the completeness of his grace contained in them, he says to it, “How beautiful are your breasts, my sister and bride. How much more beautiful than wine! The smell of your clothes is above every aroma!
56. So the Church, as it preserves the height of the heavenly mysteries, puts away from itself the heavier windstorms and invites the sweetness of a blossoming grace because it knows that its garden cannot be displeasing to Christ as it invokes its Spouse, “Up O north wind and come south wind. Blow through my garden and let my ointments flow. My brother descends to his garden and eats the fruit of his pomegranate. It [the garden] has good fruitful trees which soak its roots in the water of the holy fount and sprouts the bud of a new fecundity into good fruits so that those who are safe may not now be consumed with prophetic things but be fertilized with the productivity of the Gospel. (Mt 3:10).
57. Therefore, the Lord also pleased with their fruitfulness responded, “I entered my garden, my spouse, my sister, I have {vendemiavi} my myrrh with my ointment, I ate my food with my honey, I drank my drink with my milk.” (Song of Songs 5:1). Understand, O faithful one, why he spoke of food and drink. There is no doubt that it is in us that he eats and drinks just as you read that in us he speaks of himself as in prison. (Cf. Mt 25:36).
58. Wherefore too the Church, seeing such great grace, exhorts her sons, exhorts her neighbors to run to the sacraments with these words, “Eat my friends, drink, and be drunk, my brothers” (Song of Songs 5:1). What we eat and drink the Spirit expresses elsewhere through the prophet, “ Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed the man who hopes in him.” (Ps 33:9). Christ is in that sacrament because it is the body of Christ. So, it is not food for the body but spiritual food. The apostle says about the type, “Our fathers ate spiritual food and drank spiritual drink.” (1 Cor. 10:3) for the body of God is a spiritual body; Christ’s body is a body of the divine Spirit.
53. Sed quid argumentis utimur? Suis utamur exemplis, incarnationisque exemplo astruamus mysterii veritatem. Numquid naturae usus praecessit, cum Jesus Dominus ex Maria nasceretur? Si ordinem quaerimus, viro mixta femina generare consuevit. Liquet igitur quod praeter naturae ordinem Virgo generavit. Et hoc quod conficimus corpus, ex Virgine est: quid hic quaeris naturae ordinem in Christi corpore, cum praeter naturam sit ipse Dominus Jesus partus ex Virgine? Vera utique caro Christi, quae crucifixa est, quae sepulta est: vere ergo carnis illius sacramentum est.
54. Ipse clamat Dominus Jesus: Hoc est corpus meum Ante benedictionem verborum coelestium
alia species nominatur, post consecrationem corpus significatur. Ipse dicit sanguinem suum. Ante consecrationem aliud dicitur, post consecrationem sanguis nuncupatur. Amen succineretur, an tantum post recitatas alias orationes, non liquido exponunt. Et tu dicis: Amen, hoc est, verum est. Quod os loquitur, mens interna fateatur: quod sermo sonat, affectus sentiat.
55. His igitur sacramentis pascit Ecclesiam suam Christus, quibus animae firmatur substantia: meritoque videns profectum ejus gratiae continentem, dicit ad eam: Quam decora facta sunt ubera tua, soror mea sponsa! Quam decora facta sunt a vino: et odor vestimentorum tuorum super omnia aromata! Favus distillans labia tua, o sponsa, mel et lac sub lingua tua, et odor vestimentorum tuorum sicut odor Libani. Hortus conclusus, soror mea sponsa, hortus conclusus, fons signatus. Quo significat signatum debere apud te manere mysterium, ne violetur operibus malae vitae, atque adulterio castitatis, ne divulgetur quibus non convenit, ne garrula loquacitate dispergatur in perfidos. Bona ergo debet esse fidei tuae custodia, ut intemerata vitae ac silentii integritas perseveret.
56. Unde et Ecclesia altitudinem servans mysteriorum coelestium, rejicit a se graviores venti procellas, et invitat vernantis gratiae suavitatem: et sciens quod hortus suus Christo displicere non possit, ipsum advocat Sponsum dicens: Exsurge aquilo, et veni auster: perfla hortum meum, et defluant unguenta mea. Descendat frater meus in hortum suum, et edat
manducabam panem meum . . . bibi vinum meum . . . Quare panem et vinum dixerim, fideles intelligunt fructum pomiferarum suarum. Bonas enim arbores et fructiferas habet, quae radices suas tinxerint sacri fontis irriguo, et in bonos fructus novae fecunditatis germine pullulaverint; ut non jam prophetica caedantur securi, sed Evangelica ubertate fecundentur.
57. Denique fertilitate earum etiam Dominus delectatus respondet: Ingressus sum in hortum meum, soror mea Sponsa: vindemiavi myrrham meam cum unguentis meis,
manducavi cibum meum cum melle meo, bibi potum meum cum lacte meo (Cant. V, 1). Quare cibum et potum dixerit, fidelis intellige. Illud autem non dubium, quod in nobis ipse manducat et bibit, sicut in nobis legisti quia in carcere esse se dicit.
58. Unde et Ecclesia videns tantam gratiam, hortatur filios suos, hortatur proximos, ut ad sacramenta concurrant, dicens: Edite proximi mei, et bibite, et inebriamini, fratres mei. Quid edamus, quid bibamus, alibi tibi per Prophetam Spiritus sanctus expressit dicens: Gustate et videte quoniam suavis est Dominus: beatus vir qui sperat in eo. In illo sacramento Christus est; quia corpus est Christi: non ergo corporalis esca, sed spiritalis est. Unde et Apostolus de typo ejus ait: Quia patres nostri escam spiritalem manducaverunt, et potum spiritalem biberunt; corpus enim Dei corpus est spiritale: corpus Christi corpus est divini Spiritus; quia Spiritus Christus, ut legimus: Spiritus ante faciem nostram Christus Dominus. Et in Petri Epistola habemus: Christus pro nobis mortuus est. Denique cor nostrum esca ista confirmat, et potus iste laetificat cor hominis, ut Propheta memoravit.